“It sounds like he had decent training by watching TV,” Dr. Balk laughed.

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A clenched fist with a bent thumb allows you to push up on the diaphragm, he said, just under the rib cage.

“I have my hand underneath the breastbone, my hand covering, and I’ll thrust upward. And the idea here is compressing the diaphragm, trying to expel air and ideally, the obstruction,” explained Dr. Balk.

“It’s important for people to really be aware. If they’re not moving air, if they’re unable to cough – that’s when it’s important to do the Heimlich maneuver,” Dr. Balk said.

For Cataldi, who can find humor in virtually everything, this was sobering.